Jesse Heck, whom authorities said posed as a landlord, was paid $37,024 in rent through McPherson's Section 8 housing vouchers. McPherson received an additional $39,640 in Section 8 payments for another residence where her daughter, Nakiya, was allegedly living, according to a criminal complaint.

Jesse and Nakiya Heck purchased a Blackberry Terrace house in April 2006, detectives said. McPherson, Nakiya's mother, moved into the house several months later and used her Section 8 voucher to pay the rent. Police said McPherson was paying rent to her own family, which is a violation of U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development rules for Section 8 housing.

McPherson and Jesse Heck allegedly signed a document that stated McPherson had no "interest in the contract unit," and that Heck, the owner, was not a member of the renter's family.

While McPherson was living at another house funded by the county housing authority, Nakiya Heck changed her address from the Blackberry Terrace house to a house on Plateau Drive. Heck enrolled her children in the East Stroudsburg Area School District and used McPherson's Section 8 lease to prove residency, according to the complaint. Heck was not authorized to live at the house, according to detectives.

The investigation into the dealings between the Hecks and McPherson began when the Monroe County District Attorney's office attended an informal hearing at the housing authority for McPherson's Section 8 voucher program, according to a criminal complaint. The hearing was held by phone because McPherson was in jail on unrelated charges.

At the hearing, two of McPherson's daughters were there. One of the daughters identified herself as Nakiya Washington, 33, of East Stroudsburg. Linda Kaufman, who works for the housing authority, had previously been in contact with Washington and asked her several times about her connection to her husband Jesse Heck, which she denied, claiming he was just the landlord.

A felony warrant was issued for Nakiya Heck on charges of conspiracy to commit theft by deception. She was arrested in the Blue Mountain Lake Estates Community and transported to jail where she was video arraigned by District Judge Kristina Anzini. Heck is being held on $10,000 bail.

Jesse Heck is being held in the State Correctional Institute in Dallas on unrelated charges. He and McPherson will be arraigned at a later date.